A bee buzzes around a bulbine plant at Schulz Nursery on Friday, Mar. 18, 2011.

A bee buzzes around a bulbine plant at Schulz Nursery on Friday, Mar. 18, 2011.

Photo: KIN MAN HUI, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

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Spineless prickly pear is an option for sunny gardens under the SAWS coupon program designed to encourage homeowners to replace lawn grass with drought-tolerant plants.

Spineless prickly pear is an option for sunny gardens under the SAWS coupon program designed to encourage homeowners to replace lawn grass with drought-tolerant plants.

Photo: Tracy Hobson Lehmann, Tracy Hobson Lehmann / San Anton

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Bougainvillea bloom in the Bel Meade area on Friday Feb. 15, 2013.

Bougainvillea bloom in the Bel Meade area on Friday Feb. 15, 2013.

Photo: Helen L. Montoya, San Antonio Express-News

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Lantana

Lantana

Photo: HELEN L. MONTOYA, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

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Yaupon (Ilex vomitoria)

Yaupon (Ilex vomitoria)

Photo: Pauline Singleton

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Cenizo or Texas sage (Leucophyllum frutescens)

Cenizo or Texas sage (Leucophyllum frutescens)

Photo: Courtesy, University Of Texas

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Esperanza (Tecoma stans).

Esperanza (Tecoma stans).

Photo: JERRY M. PARSONS, Courtesy

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Texas mountain laurel blo

Texas mountain laurel blo

Photo: TRACY HOBSON LEHMANN, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

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Give the landscape an edge with Parry's agave and its spiny, swordlike leaves.

Give the landscape an edge with Parry's agave and its spiny, swordlike leaves.

Photo: Courtesy Billy Goodnick

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Autumn sage (Salvia greggii)

Autumn sage (Salvia greggii)

Photo: KATHLEEN SCOTT, SPECIAL TO THE EXPRESS-NEWS

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Planting a $100 savings

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San Antonio Water System is dangling $100 coupons to entice customers to replace lawn grass with drought-tolerant plants. The Watersaver Landscape Coupon pilot program, which will begin rolling out Saturday, is intended to subsidize the conversion of a 200-square-foot grass area to xeriscape.

SAWS customers can begin applying for the coupons Saturday at the Festival of Flowers, which runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Alzafar Shrine, 901 N. Loop 1604 West. Beginning June 1, applications will be available at www.saws.org and by calling 210-704-7283.

Once the application is approved, customers will receive the $100 coupon, which they can use at a participating nursery. Retailers will be listed at www.saws.org. So far, H-E-B Texas BackYard, Milberger's Nursery, Rainbow Gardens on Bandera Road and the Arrangement Landscape have agreed to accept the coupons.

Under the program, applicants agree to replace the chunk of lawn with 15 plants chosen from a list of 16 specified by SAWS and purchased from a participating nursery. They also must mulch the planting area and cap any automatic sprinkler heads in that section of their yard.

SAWS conservation director Karen Guz likens the process to paint by numbers for the garden. Narrowing the plant choices, she said, will be especially helpful for those new to gardening in the area.

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“There is an infinite variety of plants that could have gone into these two packages,” Guz said. The 16 options that made it were chosen for hardiness and availability from growers. Those selections are divided between two packages, one for sun and one for part-shade. Within each package, the plants are broken into three categories. Homeowners will choose seven plants classified as small evergreens, seven in the spreading perennial category and one large shrub.

The planting could include almost everything on the list or as few as three varieties — one from each category. SAWS will offer layout ideas for different 200-square-foot configurations and will provide information about plants on the lists.

Final cost of the package will vary by retailer and by the size of plants selected.

A survey last week of participating retailers showed that at the Arrangement Landscape, the packages start at about $130, before tax, for 1-gallon plants chosen for sun and 14 bags of hardwood mulch. At Milberger's, a similar package of 1-gallon plants for part-sun and bagged mulch priced out at about $156.

“We are trying to lower people's upfront costs and give them the opportunity to get a significant discount off the materials they need to make a transformation in their landscape,” Guz said.

The bigger goal is to conserve water. Total water savings will depend on how liberally homeowners had been irrigating their grass.

“Irrigated landscapes can use ... anywhere from 10 to 100 times more” than the 6,000-gallon monthly average for SAWS residential customers, said SAWS conservation manager Dana Nichols. “We have plenty of people who are using 60,000 to 200,000 gallons a month. The difference is landscaping. The indoor use is about the same.”

More Information

SAWS landscape incentive

SAWS customers can apply for the $100 coupon at www.saws.org or by calling 210-704-7283. Coupons will be mailed. SAWS customers may be eligible for two coupons, for a total of $200 and 400 square feet.

Select a spot to remove 200 or 400 square feet of lawn grass.

Cap sprinkler heads in the area. That work might qualify for a separate rebate of $250. See saws.org/conservation for details of the Irrigation Design Rebate.

Pick your plants. Is the site in full sun or part shade? Choose 15 plants of any size from the three categories. Plants must be purchased from a participating nursery.

Add at least 1 cubic yard of mulch. It may be organic, such as pine bark, or inorganic, such as decomposed granite.